A poll, please....

Diseases & Conditions Breast Cancer
1
I haven't been around much.  I've been trying to deal with a shock I rec'd after having routine bloodwork done.  In March I went to the gyn. for a Pap, the usual.  I had a scrip from my onc. for tumor markers.  While there I asked the gyn. to add a CBC/Lipid panel.  The tests were done on March 30.
 
Last week on April 29th, 5 weeks after the tests were done I got a phone call from the gyn. office (not the dr. herself) informing me that they'd reviewed my test results and that I needed to see my internist because I have elevated "glucose, fasting."  When I asked what that indicated, I was told "you have diabetes."  I was dumbfounded.  I did manage to ask to have a repeat blood test.  Nurse informed me that the dr. said no.  No putting me on hold to consult with the dr., just a flat "no."
 
I faxed the results to my dr. in NY who was on the phone it seemed like 2 mins. after I sent the FAX.  She said she wanted another fasting glucose done, next Friday, May 13.  After the results from that test she said we'll make a decision about how to handle this. 
 
So here's my question. Has anyone else been dx'd with diabetes after having chemotherapy? Granted I don't know many diabetics, but it seems like the ones I DO know all developed the condition after chemo.
 
Don't you think it's kind of odd that I didn't get the results for nearly 5 weeks?  I even asked the nurse when she called why I hadn't heard sooner re: the results.  There was dead silence on the other end of the line.  When I said  "are you there, did you hear me?"  She said "I'm here and I can't comment on that."  What do you make of this whole thing?  Why can't I just go to the dr. and get a straight answer?  How can a gyn. possibly know about diabetes?? By the way my fasting glucose was 103, apparently the normal range ends at 99. 
 
Do I sound angry because I sure am.  You all know me.  When something doesn't sound right, I'm on it immediately.  But obviously I can't do anything if I don't know there's something wrong.  To me waiting 5 weeks to get test results to the patient is unconscionable (sp.).  So that's the story here.  Hugs, Luci

In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me lay an invincible summer.  Albert Camus

2
Oh Luci, I cannot believe you have yet another medical crisis....it seems like so much you have been through lately! Sending giant hugs....

I have no information regarding diabetes. You may want to go to that Johns Hopkins website, they have a great "ask the expert service" for Breast cancer, and every topic under the sun related to it. You can ask if there is an increased risk of diabetes following chemo...and they should respond within a few hours.

As for the 5 week delay, I would not let that sit, if it were me. I would insist on speaking to the doctor and I would write a letter to him, copying in the state licensing board.

And I would see about finding a new doc....

Prayers that it is just a pork chop bone causing this to be elevated...
L&H,
Lori

3
Lucy, This sounds like some sloppy record keeping to me! Your report got lost on someone's desk and they don't want to admit it. I wouldn't worry too much about diabetes yet; 103 is still "borderline" and your repeat test may be in the normal range. Your age may have more to due with the elevated number than chemo. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for normal results! L&H, Frayda
4
WEll, Luci the same thing happened to me two years ago. In my annual blood test my glucose average number was up. I had never even heard of this test before. My PC dr told me to start testing my blood sugar. At first my morning numbers were all around 99 and I kept denying there was any problem. She sent me for a heart test, an eye exam and had me come back in three months several times. After a whole year of denial, my numbers were going up, so I attended a diabetics class where I learned a lot about that averaging test and diabetics. No, I did not have chemo. But if you watch the news there is more and more mention of diabetes. I think it is becoming as prevalent as cancer. Could environment also cause problems? Losing weight and strict diet control can handle it at first. I really did neither, but I do test my blood every morning, she wants me to do it four times a day, but I always forget until it is not the right time. But I can tell you, she was right, my numbers are up higher and now I am also taking medication, only one pill a day. Nothing like what some of the girls here deal with. I think you will find many are diabetic. And yes I waited a long time for the call from the doctor's office each time, too. Those reports do come back and sit on their desks as Frayda suggests. The averaging test is done every three months because the sugar cells in the blood live that long, so being careful of sugar consumption for a week or two won't change the test. Also I learned that STRESS causes the blood sugar to elevate as much as food for me. My worst numbers were after having my mother here for ten days. So don't stress out about it. Hugs, MK


5
Luci, I'll have to call you this weekend to talk about this. I was dx'd after chemo but my mother had it. I was dx'd while in ER for extremely high blood pressure. I was dx'd at a b/s of 351. A 106 reading would be a godsend for me. I was told that they get concerned when the fasting blood sugar is 130+.

I don't know who this dr is that left you waiting 5 weeks for this info but it doesn't appear he is very concerned about this. I like the idea of your old dr and cannot imagine a dr not wanting to have the test done a second time. BTW, if you know someone who has a glucose monitor, you could test it yourself.

This treatment seems to be happening a lot to you lately. The only good thing is that you have other drs you can rely on. Hang in there and watch the stress. I get the hiccoughs and my b/s goes up. LOL

Love You, Jo-Ann

PS - You don't want to ever have to take insulin shots. UGH!!!

A good friend will bail you out of jail...
but a true friend will be sitting
next to you saying,
"Dâmn... that was fun!".

6

Hi Luci! Gosh, what a mess. I would be furious w/ the ob as well as his nurse. There is no excuse for a 5 wk wait or an explanation. I was diagnosed w/ diabetes after starting chemo for the 2nd time. In fact, my onco kept telling me that I was diabetic but my chemo nurses told me that the sugar levels were high from my premeds. I was feeling so badly...no energy, eye sight was bad, etc (all of the signs but I ignored them) that I finally told my onco that if it was the cancer that was making me feel this way, then stop the treatments because I wouldn't live like this. She shook her head, told me that she was sure that I was diabetic and that I didn't get the premeds until after my bloodwork was taken. No treatment that day..straight to a specialist. My counts were above 600. I started on oral meds that day and felt human w/in days. My counts dropped from 600 to the 120 range. The specialist told me that the chemo was the main reason I became diabetic. I am glad that you are having another test run. Like Jo-Ann said, test yourself.

Hugs...Deb

 

7
That nurse diagnosed you?????  Isn't that what doctors are supposed to do???  Saying "it's a test for diabetes" is a lot different than "it means you have diabetes."  She's quite full of herself.  She sounds like she's not accountable in general.  This may or may not be a reflection of the doc.  Having a NY backup is a good thing, dearie. 
 
Don't freak yet, let's just see what happens (like I should talk LOLOLOL).  That John's Hopkin's site sounds like a good idea. 
 
 

"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." -Confucius

Ellen

8
Luci, you can buy Glucose Monitors in the drug stores sometimes at a very reasonable rate. My husband bought two at different times because he saw they were only $10 on special. That was a couple years even before I needed them His mother was diabetic so he thought he might need to check. When he found out he had to prick his finger, he forgot about it. LOL. If you can find a deal like that, check Walgreen, CVS and other Sunday supplements, buy one and keep testing yourself for awhile. The directions are all there and it is not hard to do. It really doesn't hurt and there is a log in the package where you can keep track to show any doctor. Hugs MK


9
I think a five-week wait is inexcusable. My test results come back within a week. Never longer. And, 105 blood sugar is only slightly elevated. It certainly does not mean you are diabetic. A second test would be in order IMHO. At least you should have been called by the doctor, not by the nurse. This whole thing is suspecious. Good luck in getting straigtht answers. Lori may have the best suggestion -- find a new doctor. Hugs, Lauri

"Go confidently into the direction of your dreams. Live the life you always imagined" Thoreau
 
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

10

Well, I'm going for that second blood test tomorrow morning at 7:00 am.  I've already begun fasting.  Hope this one comes back in the normal range.  I'm so tired of drs. and being involved in the whole medical system.  I'm not complaining.  Lord knows there are tons of people in this world struggling with far worse things.  It's just so frustrating and exhausting trying to keep ahead of the stupidity that we all seem to encounter.  Maybe if I knew less about what CAN happen I'd be better off.  Just wishing for a definite answer so I can figure out where to go from here.

Thank you all for your good thoughts and helpful advice.  I always know I'm getting solid info. here.  L&H's, Luci

In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me lay an invincible summer.  Albert Camus

11
"Maybe if I knew less about what CAN happen I'd be better off."  
Luci, I think you hit the nail on the head there. I used to think that Drs hated having people read the internet, etc, and learn about their disease.They hate seeing the list of questions a patient pulls out. eyes ut I honestly think that sometimes it is just that they know they do NOT know everything and maybe the patient might just ask them something they don't know. Heaven forbid they admit it. I think the nurse is covering her own a** or someone elses about the 5 weeks. How can she go tell the Dr now that you want a 2nd opinion without him wondering why you waiting so long to ask. I don't know, call me overly suspicious, but me thinks I smell a skunk in the shed. I agree, find a new DR. and glad to hear you are getting that 2nd test. Love you, Gail

 

Have an awesome day and know that someone thought about you today. . . . . . I did

12

Luci,

I certainly think your doctor's office handled this poorly, but I also don't think your numbers are that terribly high. I may be wrong, but I thought that 110 was when they started getting concerned. I was diabetic with both my pregnancies, and I have always been concerned about developing diabetes, since both my dad and sister have been. So far, I have not--but I'm pretty sure that my numbers were at least 100 on a few occasions. Last time, they were lower, I know, but I do think they fluctuate somewhat. I would definitely have this checked by a doctor who is more in tune with diabetes. Good luck. Please keep us posted. Hugs, Rozanne

13
First, 103 is not diabetes.
Second-who the H E L L is this person who told you that?
Third-there are Hipa laws about disclosing your medical info
Fourth-Get another doc  5 weeks is out of control!  Blood tests come back in 36-72 hrs.
 
Glad you are having another test.  My husband had a blood test done (not fasting) and the cholesterol was high (no kidding) so they told him he has high cholesterol!  He had it done again fasting and it was normal.  They didn't tell him to fast on the first one.  Even if the Chemo did it to you, there are plenty of ways to get your sugar in check.  Hang in there and good luck.  Call your doc's office 2 days after they take your blood.

Susan

14
Luci,

How did your second blood test go? I will be waiting with you for those results........let's hope all will be clear with them.

Hugs,
Debbie
^j^ ^j^ ^j^

"What sweetness is left in life if you take away friendship? It is like robbing the world of the sun"
Cicero

15

Luci,

Hope the last blood test was a better one and everything will be back to normal for you soon. I know what you mean about hating to go to Dr's and getting the run around.  Diabetes runs in my family and I put that down every time I go to a Dr, but can't remember the last time I had a fasting glucose test done.  In fact my eye Dr asked me about it last time I was in with my eye problems.  Guess I need to call my Internist and get an appointment set up too.

Thanks for a reminder and wishing for you a good test result.  Did you know your "Away" message is still on your email?  I sent you an email and it came back.

Love and God Bless,

Kitty

 

 

16

Hi Luci,

That nurse sounds like a real winner...NOT.  Anyway, I hope that you get everything straightened out quickly.  Just wanted to throw in my experience since you asked about diabetes/chemo.  I had what they thought were growths in my thryroid and had ultrasounds over a 9 month period while we followed them.  Finally was sent to an endocrinologist and was dx with Hashimoto's.  Didn't have a growth but my thyroid was inflammed and as they described it to me...it will slowly burn itself out.  Anyway, went this February to my internist for my yearly physical and he said that now that I am having thyroid issues they are going to monitor me closely as I was now more sucseptible (sp?) to getting other auto-immune diseases such as diabetes, lupus, etc.  Have no idea if there is any corellatin with my chemo but have no family history of thyroid problems, diabetes, etc.

Love, Christi